SEATTLE THEATER REVIEWS

Dear Readers, I’m all for new works, especially well written new works such as “The Park” by Lisa Every and Jenn Ruzumna, currently performing at Seattle Public Theatre. But as much as I liked the dialog in “The Park” it fell into two of my least favorite traps, a lack of point or reason f...

Dear Readers, I’m all for a show poking fun at darker, heavier topics. Hell, there’s a comedy on Broadway right now centered around the night President Lincoln was shot. But if you have something funny or poignant to say, make sure it’s not the same bit for two and a half hours such as was the...

Friendships are one of the most valuable currencies we experience in our lifetimes. Whether you cherish those friends you've known since kindergarten or have found yourself surrounded by people you've met later in life and can't believe you went so long without, we all know what it's like to feel th...

The performance was, in a word, superb...

And now we have the tour, currently playing at The Paramount Theatre. And it looks like the producers have learned their lesson with the “stunt casting” and just brought in people who can handle the part, such as Hannah Shankman as the irrepressible Fanny Brice, who is making her debut with the ...

Dear Readers, it looks like we have a new show topic trend hitting us square in our CPU, artificial intelligence and how it’s becoming more and more a part of our world. There’s a new musical about robots falling in love about to start on Broadway. And in the last week I’ve seen two shows in t...

The machines are coming for our livelihoods, Dear Readers. That was the fear a century ago with the 1923 play “The Adding Machine” by Elmer Rice. And that sentiment still holds true today with many terrified of the advancements of Artificial Intelligence or AI. And that’s what this new product...

I’m happy to say that what I witnessed last night is what I like to refer to as theatrical alchemy, when all the parts of a show, cast, set, direction, costumes, etc., all come together to form gold writes BWW critic. ...

Dear Readers, there is nothing like live theater, especially when it all comes together. And even though Selina Fillinger’s hilarious play “POTUS or, Behind Every Great Dumbass Are Seven Women Trying To Keep Him Alive”, currently playing at ACT, cannot claim that it ALL came together (especial...

Dear Readers, if you’ve seen a show from Reboot Theatre Company, you know they like to tackle old gems and turn them on their heads with non-traditional casting and perspectives. And just like when companies attempt to transplant Shakespeare or other works into different locales or time periods, s...

Digesting art that clearly portrays substantial and timely topics, such as the dynamics of power and its abuse, is paramount. From movies, books, and plays, this highly important topic has been in the news and conversation cycle lately. Cowboys With Questions, penned by local playwright Rebecca Tour...

Star-crossed lovers, a doomed ship, an iceberg, a gem, and a big damn door. I am, of course, Dear Readers, talking about “Titanic” or rather in this case, the parody from The Habit and Seattle Public Theater, “Titanish”. It’s back for another summer run and once again a must see!...

Dear Readers, I’m of two minds in reviewing this revised production of “Peter Pan” currently playing at the Paramount. First as a season ticket holder who came to the show with no kids and wants a quality musical, I question the inclusion of this in the season and find it not all that great, b...

Quite a few factors contribute to a great show, and they vary for each audience member. Vietgone is one of those rare productions that caters to a diverse audience seeking comedy, romance, and thoughtful reflection. The second Seattle production of Vietgone, written by Qui Nguyen and directed with h...

The term has become familiar and beloved to opera lovers since the late 19th century. Seattle Opera offered Ruggero Leoncavallo’s Pagliacci, one of the most performed works of this genre, as its opening production of the 2024-25 season....

I’m about to commit a musical theater geek sin, Dear Readers, so get the torches and pitchforks ready. I don’t care for Stephen Sondheim’s show, “Company”. I appreciate it for what it is, but I think it rambles, and ultimately says not very much at all. Then along comes the revival of the ...

Dear Readers, the musical version of the hit 1992, Whoopi Goldberg comedy “Sister Act” has never been one of my favorites. On paper it should work with an Alan Menken score and fabulous source material were it not for those lackluster Glenn Slater lyrics. He writes passable songs but nothing tha...

Dear Readers, chances are you played that classic board game “Clue” as a kid. That game of weapons and rooms and attempting to decipher who the killer is. And if so, then you also may have seen the classic 80’s comedy movie based on that game with a litany of comedy heavy hitters playing those...

Dear Readers, I will admit that “Girl From the North Country”, currently playing at The Paramount, is a tough one to get into. It’s not a happy little romp and not structured like your typical musical. But if you can get past the bleak and let those voices wash over you, it’s a tragically be...

Are you a good person? Does anyone truly know if they are? Countless factors go into deciding such a weighted answer, for a lot of people, politics plays a large role. 53% Of is a direct work of art that attempts to answer that question, paying special attention to that factor. The show, wittingly d...

Dear Readers, I should start by saying that “Spring Awakening”, the musical from Duncan Sheik and Steven Sater based on the 1891 play by Frank Wedekind, has never been one of my favorites. But that first national tour and especially the 2012 local production from Balagan Theatre gave me a better...

Dear Readers, as you know, I’ve often extolled the fabulousness of the shows at The Can Can. Director Chris Pink and the cast and crew repeatedly bring the goods. And I’ve often commented on how one show after another may be one of my new favorites of theirs. Well, Dear Readers, they’ve done i...

We’ve all probably heard the story of Cupid and Psyche, a forbidden love that faces a greater-than-average amount of challenges, but in this day and age, is it really more than average? The new musical extravaganza, Venus & the Vixens: Games of Love, rockingly conceived, written, and directed by M...

I was excited for this one. And if the show had been 30 minutes, it would have been great. At an hour, it would have been good. But at 90 plus minutes, the dead horse was severely beaten, and I found myself repeatedly looking at my watch....

First off, Dear Readers, “Sherlock Holmes and the Precarious Position” currently playing at Taproot Theatre, is not a Holmes story from Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. It’s a silly little lark with Holmesian characters by Margaret Raether. The program even says, “Based on the stories of Sir Arthur C...